


Return to Me

by Red (Redninja)



Category: Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Lore Olympus (Webcomic)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Separations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2021-01-05 04:30:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21207431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Redninja/pseuds/Red
Summary: Hades prepares for the holiday office party while wrestling with his feelings, not knowing if Persephone will return from the Mortal Realm.





	Return to Me

Heavy clouds had been brewing all day, reflecting the mood in Hades’ office. Autumnal Equinox had come and gone, and Persephone still had not returned to the Underworld. To him. Despite all the progress he’d made during their relationship with his confidence, and all the therapy sessions, Hades’ mood was dark as the incoming storm while he struggled with the thick blanket of emptiness that settled over him. Persephone’s work would have been done when the Equinox passed, and the harvesting season was Demeter’s work...so why was his sweetheart not home?

Kore had assured him she’d be back soon, and she’d not summoned him, so Demeter couldn’t be holding her against her will. Were they fighting, still? All the what-ifs were tumbling about in Hades’ anxious heart as he stretched, leaning back in his leather chair away from his laptop. Carding his fingers through his hair, the Grand Arbiter realized the time and blew a heavy sigh from his lips, making his way to the in-suite bathroom to get ready.

Before she had left, all of Tower One had figured out she had pull with the CEO, and Tower Two had been alerted as well. After clearing out a full inbox of messages, Persephone had a meeting with him with a formal request from the entirety of his staff - a holiday office party to celebrate the greatest time of year. The border between the Mortal Realm and the Underworld would be less guarded, Hecate had leave to do whatever she pleased that night and everyone in the company was abuzz with potential revelry.

He was kicking himself over it. He’d agreed to a rather excessive budget to throw the party, and even granted the request that costumes could be worn for the evening. Why did he make her the promise he would dress up too? Hades groused as he took his work suit off and loosened his tie to remove it so he could apply the stupid makeup for his ensemble. He’d been so caught up in her exuberant suggestion for him to play the part of the Skeleton King; he agreed to just about anything she’d said. He was regretting it now because she wasn’t here to see and enjoy it with him. 

Sad eyes looked back at him in the mirror, mournful ice as he dabbed black makeup over the wells of his sockets. It was ironic, he snorted, how he was continuing to play the part other people were giving him. The puppet master was simply someone who enjoyed kissing him back this time. 

_ ‘This isn’t what she would want,’  _ a small voice in his head whispered.  _ ‘She would want you to be happy.’ _

_ ‘She’s trying to get you to have fun,’ _ another voice reasoned. The guilt began to crawl over his skin, and loneliness dug its fingers into his skull. Hades lowered the sponge away from his face and took a deep - if shaky -breath. 

He didn’t want to do this. He felt he couldn’t go through with it, not without Persephone there. The whole thing was her idea and he was just there for the ride. He never would have agreed to any of this if he’d known she wouldn’t be there. None of this mattered without her. 

If he was being completely honest with himself, nothing he did mattered if Persephone wasn’t in his life. They’d been dating for the past year, and Hades had never realized the draw of vitality and the abundance of it had on him. She was literally the breath of life on a dead man. It was so hard to return to the way of life he had before she entered it, and with a stifled sob, Hades made the conscious decision that he didn’t want to.

He didn’t want to drown himself in so much work that he couldn’t come up for air. He didn’t  _ want _ to come home late at night to a house that had insubordinate pets and rooms bereft of floral arrangements and lighter wall art to offset the dark decor. He didn’t  _ want _ the phantom fragrance she left everywhere to go away. He didn’t want to sleep alone at night, afraid the nightmares would start coming back more frequently, the subtle bags under his eyes deepening. 

Hades looked in the mirror, the makeup sponge loose in his grip as he reflected on his life, and the unspoken commitments. He’d sworn off the nymph escorts and made Zeus change venues for Sunday brunches. He’d endured the ridicule of being the unmarried brother so long, he almost missed the way Poseidon’s exasperating taunts became halfway decent suggestions for his relationship to grow. The quiet ways in which Hades and Persephone’s love for each other deepened demanded a certain obligation that he was all too glad to give. 

She had promised her return, and he’d given his word he’d lead the festivities. Loving someone meant they could be trusted. She was nothing like the other woman he’d tried to give his heart to. Persephone could be trusted with such a fragile, bruised thing. She knew about all the times he and Minthe had fought. All the little ways Zeus subverted him. Her reasoning for throwing the party was to prove to his subordinates that they didn’t have to fear him. They could love him instead, as she did. 

Her faith in him, the passion she gave him that he didn’t deserve - that’s why he’d do it. The blackened makeup sponge dabbed over his eyes, now set with resolve. Hades dipped a brush in the canister and ran from a spot just under his cheekbone to his mouth, outlining a larger smile than he actually had. Once his mouth had been enlarged, he dabbed some makeup on his nose to shorten it and make it look more hollowed.

While the black dried, Hades smoothed his hair back with a bit of gel, brushing it back until it looked appropriately skeletal against his head. With another brush, he took white paint and dabbed over his lips, creating teeth over the black. Once the makeup was done, he put on the shabby suit that was his costume, completing the decayed look. A soft knock at the bathroom door startled him. 

“Hey,” Hecate’s voice filtered through the door. “Just got a text from Persephone, she wanted me to give you something.”

Hades fumbled at the door latch before nearly wrenching the door off its hinges. “Is she here?” he asked breathlessly. Hopelessly.

Hecate frowned apologetically, a small spray bottle in her hand. “Not yet.”

“What’s this?” Hades asked, eyeing the little bottle. He recognized the label as something Persephone used, and his bewilderment was distinct. Why would he need that?   
  


“You missed a spot on your eye,” Hecate ignored him, pushing him back into the bathroom and reaching for the sponge.

She dabbed his eye sockets with the sponge, lightly pressing into the corners of both his eyes to deepen the color. “Keep your eyes closed,” she instructed, spraying whatever was in that bottle all over his face before fanning his skin to speed dry the liquid.

“What in Tartarus was that?” Hades asked, almost sputtering. 

“It sets the makeup so you can sweat and drink and do all sorts of stuff without losing everything on your face.”

“...Oh, this is how she keeps her lip color after we have lunch?” Hades’ mind was blown. He always wondered how Persephone’s makeup never needed touching up. He had assumed it to be some sort of spell she had learned.

“Yessss,” Hecate hissed blithely, widening her eyes for comedic effect. “The secrets of a woman’s makeup. Now they are yours.”

Hades snorted, trying not to laugh outright, but Hecate’s smile was infectious as she straightened his lapels and adjusted the outrageously long ribbon that was his bow tie. Smoothing the suit jacket at his shoulders, brushing off errant dust, she paused. 

“You going to be alright?” she asked quietly. “I know you hate parties, even if she wants you to throw one.”

“I’ll be okay. She’s on the way. She’ll be here.”

The press of Hecate’s lips and the narrowing of her eyes was not something Hades ignored. “I can stay if you need me to,” she offered quietly.

“No,” he replied firmly. “It’s...not the party that’s got me on edge.”

Hecate’s gaze was level, even if her brow furrowed slightly as she gave him time to collect his thoughts. He never voiced them.

  
“It would be good if you both had that discussion,” she finally said after a long pause. “You knew she would have to go back at some point.”

“Yes,” Hades ceded, not trusting his voice to continue. Her hand was gentle as she laid it on his shoulder.

“If you’re sure, then. I’ll be going. Try to have fun.”

“I’ll try real hard,” Hades chuckled. As she left, Hades took a breath, drawing deeply into his lungs and blowing harshly through his mouth. A notification on his phone chirped and he went back to his desk to check it.

**Alecto: Hey, everything’s starting. You coming down?**

Hades let a smile crack the corners of his mouth. The Furies had been excited most of all for the party. 

**Hades: On my way.**

The elevator ride down to Floor 66 was short and before he stepped off the God of the Dead took another steadying breath. He could already smell the wet vapor of the fog machine, and hear the dull bass of whatever music they had playing. Crossing the threshold he looked at strings of flickering lights that webbed across the ceiling of the entire level that had been cleared of cubicles. Along one wall were tables of food, overflowing with varying platters of meat, cheese, sweet treats and every sort of snack in between. On the opposite wall as a designated space taped off for staged memento pictures. A couple of fauna dressed as fairies were taking a picture with Thanatos, who had simply removed his suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves to be a mafia boss. Hades rolled his eyes.

From around the corner, Alecto, Tisiphone and Megeara approached him, each in combat boots and large, loose coveralls that covered their regular clothes. Tisiphone’s costume looked splashed with some weird green fluorescent substance that covered almost her entire front. She seemed unperturbed about it.

“Hey boss!” Alecto beamed once they got close enough for a comfortable conversation. Hades smiled, looking each of them over. 

“What are you three dressed as?”

  
  
“We’re the Shade Nabbers!” Megeara squealed excitedly. She may as well have been dancing, with all the energy she had. 

Suddenly the sludge on Tisiphone made sense. “Phantom Slime!” Hades laughed, pointing at the mess on her costume. “Very clever, I like it!”

“Yeah!” Tis laughed. “You look good in that costume, by the way. The Skeleton King suits you real nice!”

“You should have got red contacts or something,” Meg suggested. “That would have made it even more convincing.”   
  
“Why would I need contacts?” he asked, twitching imperceptibly and he felt his eyes water a bit. Alecto’s smile got bigger, and he knew his eye color had been flooded over with red.

“Ooooooh,” Meg giggled appreciatively before getting distracted by other employees getting off the elevator, rushing off to greet them. Hades was very glad her infatuation with him had come to such a strangely clean end; he was completely forgotten as she gushed over their costumes.

Alecto gently tapped his arm just above his elbow. "You've already got quite a few employees who requested photos with you. Want some alcohol now or later?"

“You know me too well,” he smirked. 

“One old fashioned, coming up,” Tisiphone smiled quietly, already moving to the bartender they’d hired for the event, while Alecto lead him to a small knot of employees who lit up in glee over his costume. 

Hades had never been one for conversation with his workers. In some cases, he preferred if they kept their distance, not learning his moods and the tell-tale signs of what he considered weakness. If they knew how to tell those moods, he’d have less of their fear - and power over them.

It made conversations awkward, and requests from them were handled with less grace than he’d like. Hades supposed it was the product of not really being able to decide if he wanted to truly be touchable. Cell phone cameras clicked and flashed as he stood in the designated photo area, posing ridiculously for staff members who had never before expressed such gratitude and jubilation. 

A glass of scotch appeared in his hand and the Furies seemed willing to stay near him, in case he needed them. Hermes had arrived, dressed as an 80’s rock star with his hair teased beyond the forces of gravity. Several women gravitated to him and Hades wished he had that sort of confidence. It didn’t matter. He only wanted one woman on his arm, and after making yet another sweeping gaze across the crowd, he pursed his lips with the knowledge that she still wasn’t there. He was already on his third scotch.

  
Handing Tisiphone his glass, he waved her away from giving him his next drink. Alecto raised an eyebrow. “You good?” she asked, her tone cautious.

Hades nodded. “I need to sit down…”

The blonde fury quickly went to his side to usher him away, and her sister held out her arms to warn anyone else from approaching too closely as they lead him to a conference room. Once he was seated in the leather chair near the front, Hades sighed. The noise of the party seemed less intense now and the bright lighting was a sharp contrast. There were no windows to the room as it sat further in the building, but it felt safe and quiet. 

“What can I get you, boss?” Alecto asked, her stern gaze betraying concern. She knew he disliked large crowds and yet hadn’t known him to be neurotic about them.

“I just needed space,” Hades said, closing his eyes and taking a breath. The air felt cleaner in the conference room, less laden with the fragrance of sweets and free flowing alcohol.

The noise of revelry reverberated through the room as Meg merely stuck her head in to offer Tisiphone a couple bottles of water before it disappeared behind the closed door again. One found its way to Hades’ trembling hand. 

“You want us to stay with you, or do you need time alone?” 

“I’ll be alright alone. Just needed a breather.”

The sisters departed with the assurance that they would remain near the conference room should he call. Again, Hades was left alone with his dangerous thoughts. Squeezing water from the bottle, he drank deeply and then rose to study the garish art along the wall, for no other reason than to push away thoughts he wasn’t ready to dwell on.

They had already discussed their relationship, somewhat. She was still in school, unsure what she wanted to do with her education yet. Demeter had been insistent, demanding Persephone’s return to her obligations in the mortal realm, guilting her daughter’s sense of duty. The underlying threat to the mortals left unspoken and yet a persistent implication, should she not comply. Persephone had promised she would come back, and called and texted as often as she could get her mother to let her be. 

Hades’ heart palpitated further when the realization struck him that other than simply her word, he had absolutely no assurance Persephone would continue to return. If Demeter had her way, there was no reason for her to. He wouldn’t hold it against her when the shards of so many broken promises from others pierced him. Hades wrestled in his mind with the trust he’d built up and the experience he had trying to open his heart. He didn’t hear the door softly open and close behind him or the rustling of soft fabric.

Hades snapped out of his reverie when he heard her gently clearing her throat. Turning abruptly from the horrible art he made note to replace very soon, Hades felt all the moisture in his mouth evaporate. Standing before him in all her primal glory was the woman he would raze entire civilizations for.

She was in a gauzy jade gown. Upon further inspection it looked like a beautiful satin peplos she’d had made and then torn apart. It hung upon her in shreds, only covering the important bits. She’d grown green vines up one arm and it looked like she’d dabbed makeup over the other to imitate blood and wounds. Her hair was long, and looked half torn out of its chignon, flowers in her hair ruptured by thorns. Her feet were bare, vines and flowers winding up her calves. She was fidgeting with the cracked beads on the girdle at her waist. 

“I’m sorry I’m late,” Persephone murmured, her eyes cast to the floor.

“It’s...it’s okay,” Hades answered. “I didn’t...wouldn’t have…”

_ I wouldn’t have blamed you if you never came back. _

“It’s not okay.” Her tone was a little sharper than he thought she meant. She made to speak again, but it seemed the words were dying upon her lips. Hades could no longer stand the distance between them. Striding over to her, inexorably drawn to the savage omen of life she portrayed, the song of her already in his veins. He could do nothing but obey her calling to him, whether she knew it or not. Sweeping her up in his arms, Hades covered her mouth with his, lifting her from her feet and pressing her against the wall near the door.

Her mewling gasp was swallowed by his growling need for her, his tongue entering her mouth as soon as she opened it. Vaguely he felt her hands in his hair, lightly tugging. Hades drank of her until he needed to pull away for air. Immediately he worried about the damn makeup on his face smudging over hers and his gaze dropped to her bruised lips. To his surprise they weren’t blackened. 

“Hades,” she sighed gently, looking up into his eyes as if he were the very air she breathed. “Can we talk?”

_ Do we have to? _ He lowered her to the floor, unable to meet her gaze while catching his breath. “Yeah, let’s...uh..we do need to talk.”

With some trepidation, Hades pulled out a chair for her before he sat down at the conference table, both hands closing around the water bottle nearby in a nervous habit. Persephone took a moment for her breath to slow before looking toward him. 

“I missed you,” they said in unison. Persephone’s rosy skin blushed as she looked away, smiling nervously. She looked like a ripe pomegranate he would very much enjoy nibbling. 

His large hand covered hers. “Persephone,” he smiled sadly. “I'm glad you're back. Is everything okay?”

Persephone’s shoulders slumped and she retreated back into the chair. “Mama and I had...a lot of talking to do.”

Hades stilled the fingers that had been softly caressing her knuckles, torn between squeezing her hand and withdrawing his touch completely. Demeter would always be the shadow between them, it seemed. 

“She wanted you to stay home,” he understood. “I’m surprised you won that argument.”

“Actually, we talked a lot about you,” Kore admitted. “Between arguments that I stay home.”

Hades pressed his lips together and swallowed thickly. It needed to be said, he had to get it out before this went any further. “Sweetness, I love you.”

Her lips snapped shut. He could see her jaw tensing and the panic rising as her lips twisted. “I love you too, Hades.”

“I can’t do it anymore, though,” Aidoneus the child within him began weeping, his voice wavering as he fought for control. “This whole ‘being without you’ nonsense.”

Her entire face crumpled and even her chin trembled. She was fighting back a sob as she nodded. "I can't either. It’s why I had to come back...to tell you...."

Hades allowed her time for composure, absently grazing her knuckles with his thumb, focusing everything upon her, hoping he would be able to convey all that he felt for her in a single look.

“I didn’t really know much beyond what Mama let me read. I learned so much from watching you deal judgments, how you treat your employees, how you interact with Olympians. It made me realize how ignorant I was…”

Hades reached further for her, to softly grasp at her elbows, wishing to draw her into an embrace. “Baby no, you’re…”

Her fingers rested gently over his lips, silencing him. “You’ve been nothing but gracious to me, even explaining how to train my power. I’ll forever be in your debt for teaching me so much. Spring in the mortal realm won’t ever be the same. There’s no way I can repay you for what you’ve already given me.”

Persephone took another shuddering breath, steadying herself as she reached into her peplos to retrieve a small velvet box. She rose from the chair, nervously brushing a lock of hair behind her ear and knelt before him. She took his hand and held it firmly. Hades sat dumbstruck and nervous.

_ What’s happening? _

“Hades Aidoneus,” she breathed. “King of the Underworld, Lord of Souls, you have power beyond reckoning. I love you deeply. I love you for every quiet night you spend with me on your couch. I love you for every time you silence the voice in my head that says I’m just a stupid village girl and that I don’t belong in the company of a king. I love you for every time you ask me for advice. I love you for all the times you make me important to you. Me leaving you tested that love, but I couldn’t leave the mortals.”

Hades’ eyes widened, his breath quickening. She was kneeling before him, looking him straight in the eye , the velvet box resting on her thigh, held there by her other hand. He had no idea what was going on, why she was being so formal but the heavy moment was not lost on him.

“If you can find it in your heart, I would give myself to you. I want the man who wakes me up in the morning with a loving caress; the man who cares so deeply for lost souls, he adopted seven dogs; the man who can bring even Death to obey him. I want the man who brought a stupid drunk girl home and gave her a safe place to sleep it off.”

They were both crying freely. Hades trembled under her touch, finally understanding her formality. Persephone had always wanted him for him, not his riches, his power or even the amazing sex they had. The overwhelming realization of what she wanted made him nearly crumble into himself.

“If you think you can be patient with a woman who can’t catch all the times you flirt with her, a goddess who needs you so desperately, and yet still can’t abandon mortals, please…”

Persephone opened the box. Nestled inside were a pair of cuff links. They were fashioned in the shape of tiny pomelia blossoms, the petals themselves shaped from diamonds. Hades finally broke down and looked away, laughing through his tears. He left his chair, kneeling before her, his arms gathering her up into his lap as he kissed her temple, her eyebrows, her cute little nose, her lips.

“Persephone,” he wept. “Sweetness, I love you forever. As long as you allow me in your heart, I can learn to share you. Promise me. Promise me you’ll come back. All I wanted was you, all along.”

“Always, Hades,” she whispered, returning his kisses with her own, peppering them all over his face. “No matter how many arguments I have with Mama, I’m always going to come back to you.”

Neither Hades nor Persephone paid any attention to the conference room door quietly closing, so lost were they in their zeal for each other. Down the hall, Alecto turned to see a figure retreating from the conference room, disappearing from view. 

Tisiphone returned to her sister’s side, following her gaze, not seeing anything. “Something up?”

“I think we’re about to get some great news,” Alecto smiled. “Anytime you see one of the Fates smiling, it’s bound to be a good time.”

**Author's Note:**

> This all started because I had inspiration to see Hades as The Skeleton King, and justifying it with an 'annual office party' that wasn't Christmas themed. 
> 
> Go check out TTbret on Instagram, who inspired all this with a single picture:
> 
> https://www.instagram.com/p/B1rNbD7hkvK/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
> 
> Happy Halloween, I guess!
> 
> Special thanks to Ellis, Swoonie and Daalex. Much love.


End file.
